CHENNAI: Not long ago, former India captain Rohit Sharma criticised commentators terming the way they speak 'disappointing'. And Rohit is not alone to feel that way. His Mumbai teammate and India pace-bowling all-rounder Shardul Thakur vented his ire during a press conference after an IPL match in 2025 saying critics should review their own playing statistics before being overly preachy about a bowler's execution. The list is endless with Rajasthan Royals captain Riyan Parag being the latest entrant.
With players frequently coming out in open and taking a dig at commentators, cricket commentary has come under scanner. What made matters worse for commentators were accusations of agenda-driven commentary or personal attacks on players. Cricket aficionados often rue the absence of honest analysis of the game and remember the good old days when experts' talks used to feel pleasant to ears. Now-a-days there have been instances when a lot of people prefer muting their TV sets.
This daily got in touch with West Indies great Michael Holding to learn about the nuances of commentary. For someone who wielded the commentary mike for years giving a rational and 'hearty' insight into the game, the present day situation did not surprise him at all. He dissected the scenario in the hallowed commentary box, touched upon sensitive topics of restriction and more, especially during his time.
India did not want to use it (DRS) and they said to us as commentators, please do not talk about that and not to talk about this, the selection and the board and all that sort of thing. And I said to the gentleman who was telling me this, who was the person organising the broadcast. I said this, if anything comes up on that topic, I'm going to say what my thoughts are. Don't ask me not to comment on certain things. Because, if it raises its head, I'm going to comment on it.Michael Holding on his commentary stint during the 2014 West Indies tour of India
"Well, I wouldn't say it's okay but it does not surprise me because that is what seems to be happening these days," the 72-year-old cricketing legend from Jamaica told this daily over telephone when queried about standard of commentary.
"People want to be dictating people what they can and cannot say. Lots of people have their agenda and if you don't fall into your world and follow their narratives, you know, it's almost as if they blackball you. It is easy these days to cancel people. This (cancel) culture that I hear them talking about, you know, the power is with their corporations and organisations," he added.
Holding, the leading wicket-taker for West Indies in the 1979 World Cup which they won to retain the title, said there are so many people who are glad to do whatever is required to keep a job or get a job. He said he didn't face the situation with organisations he worked with on a regular basis but had to counter such issues during the West Indies tour of India in 2014 and 2019 ODI World Cup in England. "Not with the organisations that I worked with on a regular basis. I never got that from Sky in the UK. I never got that from Super Sports in South Africa and I never got it from Channel 9 in Australia. But what I did get, I was approached way back in 2014 when the West Indies were touring India and asked not to comment on certain things. Because if you remember those days, India did not accept the third umpire, what they call it now, the television replay umpiring and all that sort of thing."
He shared that a representative from the broadcasting team asked the commentators not to talk about DRS (decision review system), selection and cricket board. "And I said to the gentleman, who was telling me this, who was the person organising the broadcast. I said this, if anything comes up on that topic, I'm going to say what my thoughts are. Don't ask me not to comment on certain things. Because, if it raises its head, I'm going to comment on it. On one occasion, there was something, there was an LBW, I think, that was given out. It was an Indian batsman as well, he was given out, and the replay showed that he was not out, and my only comment was, 'I'm sorry that there isn't a system that could have corrected that'."
I think it might have been 2019, yes. We had this big, this big meeting before the World Cup, and people were telling us, commentators, what they were expecting of us and that sort of thing. And, again, I just let it just flow over my head because I do commentary in one way. If I see something I'm going to talk about, I'm going to mention it. And, on one occasion, there was some absolutely horrible umpiring in a game at the Oval, I think it was. I'm not sure, might have, I think it was at the Oval, and I made the comment that this is horrible umpiring because the replays just showed the umpire making mistake after mistake and had to be corrected. And I made the comment, this is absolutely horrible umpiring, and, of course, I got a call, I should not be saying things like that. So, I told them straight up, do you want me to umpire the next, I mean, to work on the next game? Just tell me, I'm happy to go home, but this is the way I do my job.Michael Holding on guidelines issued to commentators during the 2019 World Cup
A few years later, Holding encountered the situation again in the 2019 World Cup. "We had this big meeting before the World Cup, and people were telling us, commentators, what they were expecting of us and that sort of thing. And, again, I just let it flow over my head because I do commentary in one way. If I see something I'm going to talk about, I'm going to mention it. And, on one occasion, there was some absolutely horrible umpiring in a game at the Oval, I think it was. I'm not sure, but I think it was at the Oval, and I made the comment that this is horrible umpiring because the replays just showed the umpire making mistake after mistake and had to be corrected. Of course, I got a call, I should not be saying things like that. So, I told them straight up, do you want me to umpire the next, I mean, to work on the next game? Just tell me, I'm happy to go home, but this is the way I do my job."
Expectedly, the West Indian great was not selected for the next round of games but he was happy. "Commentators for the second round of games were not selected until the end of the first round but I completed all the games I was asked to do in the first round even after the call. I just wasn't asked to do anymore games which I pretty much expected after the call."
Holding lives in Grand Cayman Island, about 90 miles from Jamaica, these days and hardly listens to cricket commentaries leave alone the IPL. But he said the commentators should be selected on the basis of their prowess on the game. "I don't think that necessarily you have to be a former player to be in that position, to be able to commentate properly, because I know Tony Cozier, who did it for the Caribbean, was one of the best around. He never played Test cricket, he never played international cricket, but he was still an excellent commentator. Reds Pereira was another gentleman in the Caribbean who did an excellent job. Fazeer Mohamed is another one from Trinidad, who did an excellent job as a commentator without playing at international level. The important thing, I think, is for someone to be able to let the people at home who are watching understand what is happening with the game. Once you can do that, you should qualify to do commentary."
Holding never spoke about players' personal lives during his days as a commentator and said the commentators should focus on sport. "I don't believe commentators should be bringing anybody's personal life into commentary. If you're talking about somebody's cricket, I have no problem with commentators being critical of somebody's cricket, of their bowling or their fielding or their batting. That is part of the game. You are there to commentate on what you see happening on the field. I don't believe anybody should be delving into people's personal lives, whether they are married or not married or how many children they have or how many late nights they spend."
But he also felt that players should take their criticism of their game sportingly. "If you don't want people to criticise your cricket, then do your job properly. It's simple. You have a job to do. If you are doing your job well and properly, people will not criticise you. This is their job to talk about what has happened within the game and what they can see on the cricket field. If a player is disturbed by that, that's his problem. I have had that issue. I have spoken about cricketers and what they have done or what they haven't done in the game or how badly they have done, and people have thought that I should not be doing it, but that is my job. I cannot see you bowl a bad ball and say, oh, that was a good ball or you were unlucky. I have my credibility. People listening to you expect you to speak the truth, expect you to say it as you see it. Not because you know someone or you are friends with someone, you are going to give them a pass or you comment kindly about them because you know them or you are friends with them. You should be objectively talking about what you see in front of you."
I don't believe commentators should be bringing anybody's personal life into commentary. If you're talking about somebody's cricket, I have no problem with commentators being critical of somebody's cricket, of their bowling or their fielding or their batting. That is part of the game. You are there to commentate on what you see happening on the field. I don't believe anybody should be delving into people's personal lives, whether they are married or not married or how many children they have or how many late nights they spend. That is irrelevant to what's happening on the cricket field.Michael Holding, on commentators talking about players' personal lives
Holding asserted he never came across commentators, who promoted certain players or took down a few others as it can affect the credibility. "I don't know of people targeting people and trying to promote people beyond what they are capable of doing. If people are watching the game, they are sensitive enough to recognise when somebody is talking rubbish. Similarly, if you are trying to take down somebody unnecessarily, again you're going to lose your credibility or you should lose your credibility."
But he also did not deny the possibility of broadcasters and cricket boards pushing commentators to set their own narratives. "As I said before, you have broadcasters, you have cricket boards that have their agendas and if you don't want to push their narrative, they can punish you. So, sometimes you'll find commentators, as I said, who want to keep their jobs or who are looking for a job that will compromise their principles, which is unfortunate but as we know, it does happen. People sometimes are forced to compromise their principles because of the situation that they find themselves in."
Holding also talked about former India leg spinner Laxman Sivaramakrishnan's recent outburst where he alleged colour bias before quitting commentary. "I read an article not too long ago about Sivaramakrishnan, who was complaining about something but I have no evidence so I don't know. I like Shiv, we got along very well when he was a player and when we commentated and worked together but I don't know. It's unfortunate that he had to come out and say things like that but I have no evidence. I don't know. I can't sit on one side of the fence or the other."